By IANS
Sydney : Gautam Gambhir scored a century against Australia here Sunday to become the first batsman to amass 300 runs in the Commonwealth Bank Triangular Series.
The in-form left-hander has now scored 359 in seven matches at 59.83 — a feat achieved for the first time in his career. He also became the third Indian to hit two or more centuries in a triangular series in Australia, joining V.V.S. Laxman, who had scored three in 2003-04 and Sourav Ganguly, who had hit two in 1999-00.
Gambhir’s 113 off 119 balls is his career-best knock and his fourth century overall. It was his first century against Australia.
Delhi’s Gambhir became the second No.3 batsman from India to hit a hundred against Australia. Laxman, with four hundreds against Australia — one each at Sydney, Brisbane, Gwalior and Margao, Goa — was the first to achieve the distinction.
Gambhir’s innings is now the highest by a No.3 Indian against Australia, bettering Laxman’s 106 not out off 130 balls at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in January 2004.
The left-hander is now the third Indian batsman to register two centuries or more in Australia, joining Laxman (3) and Ganguly (2).
Gambhir and Mahendra Singh Dhoni put on 98 runs for the fifth wicket, which is India’s best against Australia in Australia. It bettered the 97-run stand between Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri at Adelaide in January 1986.
Dhoni, with 296 runs at an average of 79.00, is second in the list of leading run-getters in the ongoing tournament, followed by Australia’s Michael Clarke (293), Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara (282) and Australia’s Adam Gilchrist (230).
Robin Uthappa’s 51 off 46 balls was his first half-century against Australia.
Left-arm pacer Irfan Pathan, who finished with figures of 9-0-73-0, bowled with an economy rate of 8.11 — the worst ever by an Indian bowler against Australia at the SCG. He surpassed his own economy rate of 7.50 here in February, 2004, when he had finished with 10-0-75-2.